Clean living is green living

These past few weeks right after my retreat have been very intense for me — with quite a number of out-of- town trips. Summer is special. It is a time conducive to enjoying the beauty that abounds. The thread of all the activities has been environmental. Let me share with you the flow of my life:

Training of river warriors of quezon city

Yes! We are now moving into Quezon City. It’s exciting. The government has provided the money to clean the esteros. The Quezon City government under Mayor Herbert Bautista and Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte has been great. There are three esteros we are targeting: San Francisco, Culiat and Tandang Sora. All feed into the San Juan River, which accounts for 40 percent of the pollution in the Pasig River. Whereas the water in Estero de Paco and the esteros behind Malacañang move at a very slow pace, QC esteros are characterized by fast-moving water. Because of this they are not so polluted. The pollution moves downwards so it’s actually San Juan that suffers the gunk. 

We had our first Quezon City River Warrior training this year. As a matter of strategy I don’t do any cleanup or investments if there are no river warriors who will make sure that the investments will be protected. It’s amazing how different they look after only two days of drills and team-building exercises.  

Dipolog

I was invited to speak at a conference. Beautiful river. Lush greenery. I am consistently taken aback by the beauty of the country.

Davao

I was also invited to speak at a conference. I met Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. I was surprised at how much younger he looks — younger than when I last met him years ago. Clean living. He doesn’t drink or smoke, and has been taking hormonal injections. I am taking bio-identical plant hormones via a cream. It seems getting one’s hormones intact is an effective way to prevent aging.

Sibuyan (part two)

Sibuyan has always had a special place in my heart. Its pristine beauty never fails to touch me. This was the first time I had been to Sibuyan during the summer. The majesty is breathtaking. The waters were glassy and crystal clear.

I also need to mention Mayor Dindo Rios and his success in increasing the fishery resources.

Surigao run for the environment

My observation is that summer brings out the best in nature. I was in Surigao before and it was rainy and overcast; this time it revealed its majesty. The greenery looked lusher, the sea was blue and calm.

There is something to be said about places that haven’t been scarred by urbanization. There is a prevailing peaceful serenity that embraces the spirit. It’s like instead of being busy, you can just spread your spirit and rest. For our sanity and peace of mind, these places must be protected, and nourished.

Green initiative

The highlight of this Environment Bulletin is the launching of the Green Initiative. This is a collaboration between national government, the media, the academe, the private sector and civil society. The government is represented by the Department of Tourism, Department of Agriculture, and DENR. The objectives of the Green Initiative are 1) to preserve the Philippines amazing biodiversity, 2) to eradicate poverty and 3) to foster communities of love, hope and harmony. This project was born out of the inspiring successes of going the route of agriculture, ecotourism and social entrepreneurship in areas like Puerto Princesa, Bohol, and Guimaras, to name a few. The conviction is that if tourism, agriculture and environmental protection happen in one place — and these efforts are supported by the media and private sector investments — the results will be phenomenal. I am so pleased that ABS-CBN has taken the enlightened route of poverty alleviation as their corporate social responsibility. This means that the Green Initiative will get the full support of radio, TV, print and social media. I have no doubt we can get our country out of poverty. The goal is to get the ball rolling while we have an exceptional president and an exceptional cabinet.

For the first phase, the Green Initiative will start in Romblon and Bicol. These two regions are so beautiful and yet so poor. We want to work together with NGOs there, and other institutions that have similar values. Part of the Green Initiative is the Green Fund. This is the private sector component that will fund projects that fulfill certain conditions: 1) It must protect the environment, 2) it must alleviate poverty, 3) it must have a pay-it-forward scheme, 4) it must generate its own revenues, 5) it must have a short gestation period (not more than two years) and 6) it must be values-oriented.

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You can send project proposals to my e-mail. For questions email regina_lopez@abs-cbn.com.